Calm of Darkness
by Desktop Warrior
Summary: Flaric City stands out as an oasis amid the sands of Orre, coveted by a ruthless foe. The only thing standing in their way is an alliance of young Trainers, from whom the leaders of the Flaric resistance will be chosen through a grueling tournament... DISCONTINUED


**DISCLAIMER:** Neither author owns Pokémon. It is the property of GameFreak, The Pokémon Company, and affiliated organizations.

**A/N:** This story is a collaborative project by myself and More for More. Credit goes to my co-author for coming up with the idea and doing most of the writing for this project.

* * *

**Prologue**

Darkness engulfed the dry desert as the last, purple rays of light finally disappeared over the western horizon. As night took over the celestial reins, a calm sense of peace overcame the desert, a stark contrast to the air of tension that had permeated during the dry, hot day. It didn't last for long, though. Peace soon gave way to what at first began as a distant rumbling sound, similar to thunder, but which with time rose with a crescendo into a dull roar. Thousands upon thousands of worn out boots lifted and fell in unison, creating by far the loudest sound in the night. The hordes of troops were marching toward one goal and one goal only. As they ate, drank, and slept, one thought occupied their minds to the exclusion of all else: their conquest of Flaric City, the biggest source of water in the sandy, dry desert of Orre.

As the lights of Flaric finally appeared in the distance, the soldiers straightened their backs and prepared for their commanders' signal. The sense of excitement and anxiety permeated the humid air only to be replaced by the deep baritone of their Commander-in-Chief. The man stopped, turned and nodded to one of his subordinates who grabbed a worn and scratched Pokéball from his belt. The subordinate then lobbed it up into the air, releasing a giant rock serpent almost 30 feet long. The snake lowered its head and the first man climbed on top of its rocky head, holding onto its horn for balance before speaking again.

"This is the day," he began, "The day where we finally win back what should rightfully be ours. This city is just the final stepping stone to bringing yourselves out of dismay. After today, you'll be able to sleep easy, knowing that your sons will be able to eat, that your daughters will be able to bathe, that your wives will be able to relax and know that there will be no more danger, no more fear, and no more oppression!" With this the commander paused and studied the faces of his battle-lusting troops. He saw the pain and the suffering from the toll of the march on each man's face. He knew that, in the end, he was doing this for them.

"We need very little to survive," he continued in the same deep voice. "Love, family, friends…these are the things that help us keep driving ourselves as we wake up each morning. But one thing we don't have is water, our life essence, our energy that allows us to live. And because of _them_ we scarcely have any. I just finished the last of my water mere minutes ago and I know that each of the rest of you is running out as well. But gentlemen, in a few hours we will have as much as we need. No more withholding it from us as if we're average beggars. We are people and as such, we deserve the right to live!"

"So as you and your faithful partners go out there into the heart of treachery I ask only one thing of you. Fight with all your might and your heart! Fight for your homeland and fight for your families!"

His inspiring, heartfelt speech was greeted with raucous cheers from the weary but battle-hardened troops, accompanied by the stamping of boots and thrusting of firearms into the air. He leaped off of the giant rock snake, his cowboy hat going askew in the process. As he landed, he reached up and fixed his hat before releasing his own Pokémon , a small brown bird with a hard leek in its mouth. Glancing behind his back, he made a fist in the air and pulled it quickly down giving the signal to the masses of trained killers behind with him. At once, the entire army started running, with all lights turned off, towards its destiny.

* * *

A young man stood on a shaky stone wall about a half mile out of the city's gates. He had recently traded shifts in order to have a date with his girlfriend. So here he was, looking out into the vast quiet expanses of the desert. It brought him a sort of peace that he could only experience out here and in retrospect, made the whole midnight shift worth it. He was brought out of his thoughts by the sounds of tennis shoes on metal and turned to see who had come to join him on his midnight exile.

A slightly older man, around the age of 22, came to a stop right next to him. With his trademark jacket and baseball cap, the young sentry would have recognized him anywhere. The older man held out a sandwich saying, "Time you ate. Don't want you getting hungry on the job," before turning to look out at the darkness.

"Watcha doing out here, boss? Nothing better to do or the girlfriend kick you out? And where is the little guy?" the young sentry sputtered, brimming with questions as he tried to lighten the atmosphere. He looked towards the older man who just continued to stare out into the distance. Finally, the older man broke out of his reprieve, muttering a few words out of the corner of his mouth.

"Needed to collect my thoughts," he responded. Pausing for a moment, he continued: "And he's with her." He referred to his longtime companion. "He decided the best thing to do was to protect her."

The young sentry didn't know what to say in reaction to that. Here he was, trying to break the ice and his boss had actually responded to him. His eye, however, was drawn to a flash in the distance. It didn't last for long but it was unmistakable to his eye.

"Boss," he whispered. "There is something…someone out there…" His voice quavered with both anxiety and excitement. The attack had been rumored for days and here was the first possibility they had seen.

"Shit," the boss replied, looking at the spot where the sentry had just pointed. His face turned ashen. The moment he dreaded had finally come. It was a do or die moment and he was ready to live, if not for himself, then for her. No matter how much she denied it, she needed him as much as he needed her. He was willing to create a safe environment for her at any cost. Looking over, he whispered back hurriedly: "Go to the Commander. Tell him it's started." The sentry hesitated for the smallest of moments. "Run. Now!" his superior said emphatically, hoping the urgency of his order would be understood. The sentry seemed to take the hint and jumped off the wall, cringing at his fall before sprinting to the command bunker in the centre of the city.

The older man watched him go for a couple of moments before reaching inside his trademark jacket and grabbing a compressed red and white sphere. He moved his thumb to the middle and began to enlarge the Pokéball until he was knocked back by a force stronger than any he had felt prior to this moment. As he gasped for air, a small brown bird flew over the wall and hopped on top of him, a leek in its wing. The man watched, gritting his teeth in pain, as the leek grew a deep purple color before the bird raised it up to its brow. It stared at him, wheezing for air, and then cocked its head to the right, looking at him almost quizzically. Just when the man thought he saw a look of remorse in the bird's eyes, it vanished, replaced by a cold resentment. With one movement, the leek came across the bird's chest and cut through the base of his neck. The bird then brought the leek, dripping with blood, back up to its normal position and cawed before flying off into the darkness of the night and back to its master. It left behind a motionless body that gushed blood, staining the stone all the way down to the foundations of the wall.

* * *

The Commander looked around the room at all of his subordinates, his cool, calculating look a norm for anyone who knew him. Some looked shocked but some knew that this had been inevitable. He turned back to his display and announced his first command of the night.

"Prepare for battle."


End file.
